Art on 56th is proud to announce LOCAL INSPIRATIONS, a solo exhibition of works by Lebanese artist Haibat Balaa Bawab. Her collages and oil paintings depict both urban and rural scenes, where modernity meets nostalgia, vividly telling stories about her inspiring hometown. Weaving memory to reality, the compositions are as personal as they are universal, acting as a window into a familiar and timeless world.
Haibat’s works explore the mediums of collage and oil painting, experimenting with surface, texture, space, and color. She gathers fragments from magazines, stamps, bills and newspapers, attributing a new story to each collected element. The various, abstract components are then arranged and reborn to produce figurative compositions. Space is compressed, characters overlap and the layers of components blur the line between flatness and depth. The rich textures invite close inspection, and encourage imaginative interpretation.
Each element tells a specific story, and every cutout carries a unique meaning. The parts of the collage, through their pattern, motifs, shape and color, hint at status, individuality and personality. The kaleidoscope of features pays tribute to the diversity of the Lebanese people, and together, they form a multimedia visual diary of the country through the artist’s unique perspective and the voice of her state of mind.
